Despite the recent emergence of GenAI and large language models (LLMs), numerous educational tools utilizing these technologies have already been developed, with their numbers expected to increase rapidly. Users of such tools are also growing exponentially. AI-based educational tools, leveraging the capabilities of large language models, usher in a new era of education with personalized tutoring, easy content creation, and automatic grading. As the array of available tools expands, educators must acquire digital competencies to select and evaluate the most suitable options. However, the swift growth in GenAI capabilities raises concerns about their impact on students (e.g., misinformation, increased cheating, ethical and privacy issues) and teachers (reduced social interaction, job displacement, and loss). The GenAI4ED project aims to address these challenges by developing a digital platform to consider popular AI-based educational software, evaluate various aspects of each tool, and offer the most suitable option for individual teachers and/or students. Notably, the platform will be employed in pilot experiments in selected schools, whereby students and educators will be asked to evaluate the available tools. Assessment will be based on a predefined set of carefully designed criteria, exploring how such tools affect the student’s experience and how they complement the teachers’ skills and improve their working conditions. Importantly, through an interdisciplinary approach involving experts in AI, psychology, and ethical concerns as well as teachers and parents, GenAI4ED will utilize the results of the pilot experiments to develop policy recommendations on how to harness the benefits of GenAI tools best to enhance the teaching experience for both students and educators, while protecting the teachers’ jobs, improving their working conditions and creating opportunities for new teaching roles.

The EnergyShield project will develop an integrated toolkit covering the complete EPES value chain (generator, TSO, DSO, consumer). The toolkit combines novel security tools from leading European technology vendors and will be validated in large-scale demonstrations by end-users. The EnergyShield toolkit will combine the latest technologies for vulnerability assessment (automated threat modelling and security behaviour analysis), monitoring & protection (anomaly detection and DDoS mitigation) and learning & sharing (security information and event management). The integrative approach of the project is unique as insights produced by the various tools will be combined to provide a unique level of visibility to the users. For example, it will be possible to combine vulnerability scanning with automated threat modelling to provide insights into software vulnerabilities present in an architecture in combination with insights into what are the key assets, risks and weak links of the architecture. The toolbox will allow end-users to predict future attacks (as it provides insights to what attacks can be applied to the weakest links of the architecture) and learn from past attacks (for example using the insights from the vulnerability assessment and threat modelling to prevent attacks, and learning from attacks to update the probabilistic meta-model of the threat modelling). The toolkit will be implemented with the complete EPES value chain who will contribute to the specification, prototyping and demonstration phases of the project. Although the toolkit will be tailored to the needs of EPES operators, many of the technology building blocks and best practices will be transferable to other types of critical infrastructures. The consortium consists of 2 large industrial partners (SIVECO and PSI), whereof SIVECO is taking the lead supported by 6 innovative SMEs, 3 academic research organizations and 7 end-users representing various parts of the EPES value chain.

ARCOE aims to create a virtual talent innovation ecosystem hub to improve HR practices, career development and research collaboration. First, an in-depth organisational assessment will be conducted, including an analysis in the Widera countries, to assess career development frameworks, HR practices and alignment with the Research Charter. A gap analysis will then be performed to identify areas requiring improvement. The hub will assist researchers in their professional development by acting as a centralised place for networking, training and career development. Training programmes and career services focusing on digital transformation, deep tech industries and the Green Deal will be created through the hub. The project will assist 15 participating organisations in applying for HRS4R, ensuring compliance with strict guidelines for the recruitment of researchers. In addition, emphasis will be placed on networking and collaboration between the academic and non-academic sectors through the Meet&Match system in the ecosystem hub, to enhance alliances and encourage researcher mobility. As for the Virtual Hub, a long-term business plan will be created to ensure its viability even after the project has ended. In addition, ARCOE will implement a comprehensive communication and distribution plan to ensure maximum impact and reach. To maximise the project's influence and promote international cooperation, synergies with other projects and programmes will be explored. In conclusion, ARCOE is dedicated to fostering talent ecosystems that create attractive and sustainable initial research careers. Through this initiative, we aim to improve mobility, collaboration and career opportunities in all areas, to empower the next generation of researchers and strengthen the European research and innovation landscape.

SYMBIOSIS is a pioneering interdisciplinary initiative in biodiversity, aligning with the UN's vision for responsible land use and the European Green Deal. It will build a community of practice between transport infrastructure, energy distribution and production, and biodiversity, while addressing the role of strategic planning in climate change and building resilient infrastructure. The collaborative approach will accelerate action, seamlessly integrating diverse stakeholders within the CSA framework and the EU-Rail Master Plan. SYMBIOSIS offers a holistic approach integrating biodiversity consideration through the entire lifecycle of infrastructure projects. Introducing an impact assessment tool for linear infrastructure, it promotes digitalisation, contributing to a unified European biodiversity baseline through standardised data collection, monitoring and mapping in transport and energy projects. Committed to nature-based solutions for climate-resilient infrastructure, SYMBIOSIS establishes a methodology contributing to the "theory of change", guiding decisions and facilitating information exchange for "no net loss" and "net gain" biodiversity objectives. Building on the momentum created in projects such as the EU-funded BISON project, SYMBIOSIS envisions the coexistence of sustainable infrastructure with thriving biodiversity, advocating for social, economic and environmental well-being. It provides guidance for regulatory changes in biodiversity standardisation globally, acts as a cornerstone for science-based decision-making, similar to the SOURCE platform, and will contribute to a unified European biodiversity baseline, including processes such as CSRD and supply chain management. SYMBIOSIS provides recommendations for biodiversity-related research and innovation, guiding decision-makers and investors on pathways leading to a sustainable, biodiverse future. It showcases transformative change through cross-disciplinary efforts for harmonious coexistence.

PALAEMON proposes the development and evaluation of a sophisticated mass centralised evacuation system, based on a radical re-thinking of Mass Evacuation Vessels (MEVs) combined with an intelligent ecosystem of critical components providing real-time access to and representation of data to establish appropriate evacuation strategies for optimizing the operational planning of the evacuation process on damaged or flooded vessels. The intelligent ecosystem of PALAEMON incorporates innovative technologies for sensing, people monitoring and counting and localisation services as well as real-time data during accident time. These will be integrated into an independent, smart situation-awareness and guidance system for sustaining an active evacuation route for large crowds, making emergency response in EU passenger ships more efficient. Continuous monitoring and permanent control will enhance the capacity to detect, prevent and mitigate any issue and potential harm arising from physical and/or man-made accidents and disasters. The proposed ecosystem will include the new IMO standard for data exchange-VDES. Since maritime disasters in recent years are a stark reminder of the imperative need for timely and effective evacuation of large passenger ships during emergency the aim of this project is to maximize the effectiveness of passenger evacuation, during an emergency and/or a serious incident, from large Cruise and RoPax ships by combining the expertise of stakeholders from the field of cruise ship manufacturing, large cruise ship operators, classification societies, sensor and technology organizations, with a multidisciplinary group of innovators (incl. innovative start-ups, consolidated SMEs in the smart ICT domain, experts in the ship evacuation domain from research institutes, international networks in maritime and key industry drivers. MEVs prototypes will be validated in controlled enviroment and the smart evacuation ecosystem will be demostrated in two use cases.